Hemant Mehta is the founder and editor of FriendlyAtheist.com, a YouTube creator, and podcast co-host. He is a former National Board Certified math teacher in the suburbs of Chicago. He has appeared on CNN and FOX News and served on the board of directors for Foundation Beyond Belief and the Secular Student Alliance. He has written multiple books, including I Sold My Soul on eBay and The Young Atheist's Survival Guide. He also edited the book Queer Disbelief.
The mayor of Monterrey, Mexico, Margarita Arellanes Cervantes, recently spoke at an event called “Monterrey Prays” (organized by a group called the Pastors Alliance) and gave quite the sermon: “I, Margarita Alicia Arellanes Cervantes, deliver the city of Monterrey, Nuevo León to our Lord Jesus Christ. For his kingdom of peace and blessings to be established, I open the doors of this city to God as the maximum authority.” The mayor said that without the presence and help of Jesus Christ there cannot be real success; “If the Lord doesn’t build the house, the ones who build it work in vain; if the Lord doesn’t care for the city, the watchers stand guard in vain.” … She mentioned that some people are offended and intolerant if God is spoken of in public, but tolerate and stay silent before hatred and evil… [Click headline for more…] Read more
Sam Harris often gets criticized as “Islamophobic.” But in a piece recently posted on his website, he explains his appreciation for “contemplative rituals,” like religious calls to prayer. It’s not that he lacks empathy for moderate Muslims (the “peaceful billion,” he writes) when he goes after the radicals; instead, his empathy lies with the victims of Islamic fundamentalism — the gays, the women, the apostates, etc. Religious devotion, in the wrong hands, can wreak havoc on a society: [Click headline for more…] Read more
Today, on a show in which he discussed suicide, Pat Robertson talked about the reasons children are at risk. There’s bulimia. And anorexia. And “Dungeons & Dragons.” Not on Robertson’s list of factors leading to suicide? The Christian Right’s demonizing of LGBT youth. [Click headline for more…] Read more